Candidates Must Have Consistent Pro-Life Views
As we look back on what we have accomplished
over the years since Roe v. Wade we can
point to certain restrictions and regulations of the
practice of abortion. As we look ahead, we see a
future in which the life issues expand way beyond
abortion, euthanasia and assisted suicide  a future
in which the fate of the human embryo will be decided
and in that decision will rest the fate of humanity.
The measuring sticks of trimesters and viability are
out the window. We have reached a place where the
core of what it means to respect and protect innocent
human life is upon us. We must summon the
political will to prevail!

Pro-life Republicans should expect
candidates to have a consistent position on
the right to life. If we are to create a future
society in which every innocent human life
from its inception, whether through natural
or unnatural means, is respected and protected
from assault or injury, we must elect
public servants who do not justify the deliberate and
intentional killing of an unborn child at any stage of
development for any reason. Too many politicians
get away with splitting the difference. On the one
hand, they say they are pro-life, and on the other,
send a signal to the pro-abortion crowd that they
are really no threat to legal abortion after all.

A recent case in point comes from the campaign
web site of Jack Ryan, who is running for
the U.S. Senate to replace Peter Fitzgerald, a solid
pro-life Senator from Illinois, who is stepping down.
Mr. Ryan says, "I believe that life begins at conception.
It is an undeniable medical fact that a babyís
heart begins to beat around 22 days from conception,
around the same time their spinal column and
nervous system begin to form, and the liver, kidneys
and intestines are beginning to take shape. Not protecting these innocent children is unconscionable." He goes on to say that he will "fight for the sanctity of
human life from conception to natural death."

But then Mr. Ryan sends a different signal. He
says, "Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush and Henry
Hyde share my system of beliefs that abortion should
only be allowed in cases of rape, incest or when the
life of the mother is at stake." The glaring inconsistency
of this position is amazing, and unfortunately, it
is an inconsistency that is commonly expressed by
politicians and often accepted as sufficient by pro-life
voters! Yet, it is impossible to believe in the "sanctity
of human life from conception until natural
death," and at the same time justify abortion
for rape or incest or any other reason.

We must send a loud and clear message
to candidates that we will not grant them H pro-life status unless they earn it with a publicly
stated position that the unborn child has
a fundamental individual right to life which
cannot be infringedno exceptionsno compromise!

If legal protection of the right to life is to be
restored in the United States it will take a majority of
Members of the U.S. House and Senate who will
exercise their powers under the U.S. Constitution to
withdraw jurisdiction from the Courts over these matters.
If legislation is to be enacted recognizing that
unborn babies are persons under the law, it will take
lawmakers who are unconditionally pro-life to do it.
If men and women with the dedication and commitment
necessary to make these things happen are to be
elected it will take pro-life leaders and individual voters
who will no longer settle for second best.

Editor's Note:According to his many pro-life speeches and statements during his congressional career, and his answers to
the RNC/Life Candidate Questionnaire, Rep. Henry Hyde does
not justify abortion under any circumstances.

CONVENTION RESOLUTIONS AND
NATIONAL DELEGATE SELECTION

2004 Republican Convention Delegate Selection

Republican precinct, county and state conventions are fast approaching. Grassroots pro-life and profamily
Republicans will once again have an opportunity to offer pro-life platform resolutions at their
local and state conventions. The principles contained in resolutions passed at the local and state levels are
intended to form the basis for those adopted by the Platform Committee at the Republican National Convention to be held in New York City, August 30 - September 2, 2004.

These resolutions may also be used to determine who is chosen to represent you as Delegates and Alternates to the Republican National Convention. Candidates for Delegate/Alternate should be required to commit to support and argue in favor of these principles at the National Convention before pro-lifers commit to vote for them.

Convention Resolutions

We offer for your consideration the following pro-life resolutions to be introduced at precinct, county/district, and state conventions of the Republican Party.

Because of the multitude of public policy issues related to human life that have arisen within the scientific
and medical communities, particularly with respect to reproductive technologies and experimentation
on human subjects, we are including resolutions that relate to embryonic stem cell experiments, human cloning, and fetal tissue experiments.

Of course, there is always the possibility that, at some conventions, these resolutions could be defeated.
Please do not be discouraged if that happens. There is great educational value in simply reading them aloud to the Delegates, so that people can listen and learn. Many more conventions will pass them, resulting in greater attention being paid to these critical issues at the national level.

A RESOLUTION TO REAFFIRM THE FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT TO LIFE

In the spirit of America's founding document, the Declaration of Independence, and as Delegates to the _________________ Convention of the Republican Party of (insert name of state), we reaffirm the
self-evident truth that "all men ... are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among
these are life . . ."

Therefore, we uphold the principle that every human being, from conception to natural death, has a
fundamental individual right to life which cannot be infringed.

The Declaration further states: "That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men . . ."

In the tradition of our Founding Fathers, and in an effort to once again secure the right to life,
we reaffirm our support for a human life amendment to the United States Constitution, and we endorse
legislation to make clear that the Fourteenth Amendmentís protections apply to unborn children. We
oppose using public revenues for abortion and will not fund organizations which advocate it. We support
the appointment of judges who respect traditional family values and the sanctity of innocent human life.

A RESOLUTION TO BAN THE CLONING OF HUMAN BEINGS

On January 22, 2004, President George W. Bush, in his message to the March for Life in
Washington, D.C., said the following: "We'll work with Congress to pass without delay a comprehensive
and effective ban on human cloning. We can push the limits of medical science while maintaining
the highest of ethical standards. Human life is a creation, not a commodity, and should not be used as research material for reckless experiments."

Therefore, as Delegates to the ________________Convention of the Republican Party of (enter
name of state), we urge the United States Congress to work with the President to pass legislation totally
banning any and all attempts to clone human beings in our country.

A RESOLUTION TO BAN HUMAN EMBRYONIC STEM CELL RESEARCH

Since 1995, Congress has explicitly prohibited the use of federal funds for "research in which a
human embryo or embryos are destroyed, discarded, or knowingly subjected to risk of injury or death."

Embryonic stem cells are obtained by killing the human embryo. This is clearly an immoral,
unethical course of action based on a utilitarian view that the weak and defenseless may be sacrificed for
some possible good end.

However, stem cells are also being derived from non-lethal sources. Stem cells taken from umbilical
cord blood and placentas (after the birth of a living baby) and adult stem cells are now being used
with great promise and success in experiments to assist in the cure or treatment of disease, while experiments
with embryonic stem cells have yielded no positive results, only negative and harmful consequences
to the patients involved.

The science of embryology is abundantly clear  a human being is in existence at fertilization.
Medical Ethics, from the Hippocratic Oath of the fourth century, B.C., to the mid-20th Century
Nuremberg Code, to the Council of Europe's 1997 Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine, all
affirm this basic principle: First, do no harm.

We, as Delegates to the _____________ Convention of the Republican Party of (enter name of
State), therefore resolve that the United States Congress should pass a complete ban on human embryonic
stem cell research.

A RESOLUTION TO BAN THE USE OF ABORTED BABIES
IN FETAL TISSUE EXPERIMENTS

Passage of the National Institutes of Health Revitalization Act of 1993 lifted the federal ban on
the performance of fetal tissue transplant experiments using the victims of induced abortion. Since then,
shocking evidence confirms that abortion clinics, medical schools, university research laboratories and
pharmaceutical companies are trafficking in the organs and bodies of aborted babies, some of whom are
aborted alive and then killed for their organs.

These activities cannot be condoned by a civilized, compassionate society.

Therefore, we, as Delegates to the _____________ Convention of the Republican Party of (insert
name of state), urge Congress to pass legislation banning research on fetal tissue obtained from induced
abortions and providing stiff fines and criminal penalties for violations of such a law.

RNC/Life Political Action Committee
(PAC) Report Now AvailableWe invite you to visit our web site to view the
results of RNC/Life Candidate Questionnaires that are currently being
returned to us from Republican congressional candidates in every state.

As filing deadlines occur, we gather the names and addresses of
Republicans who are running for Congress. We mail an RNC/Life
Candidate Questionnaire to each of them and invite them to respond
within seven days. It usually takes two to three weeks after closing for the
questionnaires to reach the candidates and be returned to us. If a candidate's
name does not appear on our PAC Report it means the filing deadline
has not closed or we had no response to our questionnaire.

RNC/Life asks the hard questions on the life issues. Our Candidate
Questionnaire
is designed to identify the candidates we can support who
are pro-life in principle and will work hard to promote policies and laws
that recognize and affirm the sanctity of life for innocent human beings yet
unborn. We are not looking for pragmatists and compromisers.

You may view the questionnaire on our web site at
http://www.rnclife.org. Please feel free to download it and submit it to candidates
for local, county, and state office. After all, it is not enough to ask
a candidate if he is pro-life. What we must know is  to what extent is he
pro-life? Does he justify abortion for some babies and not others? If so,
the candidate is not worthy of our support. The right to life is not a single
issue  it is a qualifying issue.

Please do what you can to support the solidly pro-life candidates who
are running in your state. Youíll be glad you did
.